Federal Register: December 4, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 233)
DOCID: FR Doc 02-30763
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Environmental Protection Agency
FRL ID: [FRL-7417-2]
NOTICE: NOTICES
ACTION: Reports and guidance documents; availability, etc.:
DOCUMENT ACTION: Notice of availability and opportunity for public comment.
SUBJECT CATEGORY:
Generic Assessment Endpoints for Ecological Risk Assessments (External Review Draft); Notice of Availability
DATES: The 60-day public comment period begins December 4, 2002, and ends February 3, 2003. Comments must be provided by February 3, 2003.
DOCUMENT SUMMARY:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing a 60day public comment period for the draft document titled Generic Assessment Endpoints for Ecological Risk Assessments prepared by the Agency's Risk Assessment Forum (RAF). The document is intended to assist EPA during the process of ecological risk assessment in selecting assessment endpoints, which are valued ecological entities and attributes to be protected. EPA will consider the public comment submissions in revising the document.
SUMMARY:
Generic Assessment Endpoints for Ecological Risk Assessments,
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
I. Submission of Comments
Electronic comments are preferred and may be sent by email to: risk.forum@epa.gov. Alternatively, comments may be mailed to the Technical Information Staff (8623D), NCEAW, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460, or delivered to the Technical Information Staff at 808 17th Street, NW., 5th Floor, Washington, DC 20006; telephone: 2025643261; facsimile: 2025650050. In the case of paper comments, please submit one unbound original with pages numbered consecutively, and three copies of the comments. For attachments, provide an index, number pages consecutively with the comments, and submit an unbound original and three copies.
Please note that all comments received in response to this notice will be placed in a public record. For that reason, commentors should not submit personal information (such as medical data or home address), Confidential Business Information, or information protected by copyright. Due to limited resources, acknowledgments will not be sent. II. Background
Ecological risk assessment is a process for evaluating the
likelihood that adverse ecological effects may occur or are occurring
as a result of exposure to one or more stressors. A critical early step
in conducting an ecological risk assessment is to select assessment
endpoints. Assessment endpoints represent valued ecological entities,
and their attributes, upon which riskmanagement actions are focused.
Selecting assessment endpoints is often challenging because of the
diversity of species, ecological communities, and ecological functions
from which those involved in risk assessment can choose and because of
statutory ambiguity regarding what is to be protected. The purpose of
the RAF document is to assist EPA risk assessors by providing a set of
generic ecological assessment endpoints that can be considered and
adapted for use in specific ecological risk assessments, building on
existing EPA guidance and experience. The document is not prescriptive,
but rather is intended to be a useful starting point that is flexible
enough to be applied to many different types of ecological risk
assessments. The document is undergoing peer review concurrent with the public comment period described in this notice.
Dated: November 12, 2002.
George W. Alapas,
Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. 0230763 Filed 12302; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 656050P
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
For information on the public comment period, please contact Scott Schwenk, U.S. EPA, Office of Research and Development, National Center for Environmental Assessment (8601D), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone: 2025646667; fax: 2025650062; email: schwenk.scott@epa.gov.